Need help; home previous section 8

[Saleen Moore]

Hi. I am asking this on behalf of a friend. She rented a home that was section 8, but recently due to the government cutbacks on section 8, the home was declassified from section 8.

Her problem is this. She signed a new lease with her landlord in January of this year, while the home was still section 8. It has been since then that the home was declassified, and now she has a new landlord.

The landlord wants her to sign a new lease, doubling her rent, which she can't afford (why else would she have been section 8, right?) She is also only days away from delivering a baby so moving right now is not an option for her.

Logic and everything I have ever read tells me that even if there is a new landlord, that lease she signed in January is still valid and the new landlord, in spite of the fact the home has been declassified, still has to honor the rent stated in the lease she signed at that time. Am i wrong?

I know when I have bought properties before, I have had to honor the agreements made on their existing lease for the remaining term of the lease, but I have also never had to deal with section 8 before, either.

She took the problem to section 8, who ruled against her, but personally, I don't see them as 'rental experts' and since they no longer pay the rent or however that works, they really don't care whether she suddenly has to pay more or not, since they are no longer a party to it.

Can someone please help me out... the stress is not good for my friend - her pregnancy is already high risk without having to deal with this problem and I want to help her.

Thank you